Understanding What You Read

Reading comprehension tests your ability to understand written French. Passages may be short stories, articles, dialogues, or advertisements.

What You'll Encounter

• Main idea questions: What is the passage mostly about?
• Detail questions: What does a specific word or phrase mean in context?
• Inference questions: What can be guessed even if it’s not directly stated?

Strategies

• Read the questions before the passage to know what to look for.
• Pay attention to transition words like 'cependant' (however) or 'par conséquent' (therefore).
• Don’t get stuck on unknown words—focus on the overall meaning.

Everyday Use

Being able to understand written French is useful for reading menus, signs, or websites while traveling or working with French-speaking clients.